I found this article yesterday which arrogantly touts that it has
found the achilles heel of "libertarianism", which, in his words is
a "pitiless, one-sided, mechanical view of the world" that "seeks
to justify the greedy and selfish behaviour of those with wealth
and power".
http://www.monbiot.com/2012/01/06/why-libertarians-must-deny-climate-change
There seem to be many erroneous assumptions in this article about
what libertarianism is all about and also about what its aims are
and what a society might look like if authoritarian controls over
peoples lives were eliminated, or drastically reduced.
Though I do not refer to myself as a libertarian, reading this
article, I feel frustrated and sad because Monbiot's assumptions
and generalisations about a free market just do not meet my need
for understanding nor my need for respect.
In his critique of libertarianism, I think Monbiot leaves out a
very important detail: that a truly free society can only be
successful (or, i believe has the best chance of being successful)
in the context of an
appropriate ethical
framework.
As I understand it, voluntarism and liberty ideals are about
building a society around a structural framework of respect,
non-violence, empathy, industrious self-reliance and an evolved
understanding of our interconnectedness as humans. This seems like
it could be a remarkable improvement and alternative to the
societal structure that humans have been living under for a very
long time, namely: domination, coersion, violence, perpetual
inequality and the life-alienating, divide-and-conquer tactics that
politicians, so-called "world leaders", and even religious
"officials" use to secure their own control and power.
